Saint Sophia Cathedral, Kyiv

Coordinates: 50°27′10″N 30°30′52″E / 50.45278°N 30.51444°E / 50.45278; 30.51444
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
(Redirected from
Saint Sophia's Cathedral, Kyiv
)
Saint Sophia Cathedral, Kyiv
Собор святої Софії/Софійський собор
Style
Byzantine architecture,
Ukrainian Baroque
Years built11th century
Specifications
Length41.7 m (137 ft)
Width54.6 m (179 ft)
Dome height (inner)28.6 m (94 ft)
Europe
Part ofKyiv: Saint-Sophia Cathedral and Related Monastic Buildings, Kyiv-Pechersk Lavra
Criteriai, ii, iii, iv
Reference527
Inscription1990 (14th Session)
Endangered2023

Saint Sophia Cathedral in

Ministry of Regional Development of Ukraine to the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine.[4][5] One of the reasons for the move was that both Saint Sophia Cathedral and Kyiv Pechersk Lavra are recognized by the UNESCO World Heritage Program
as one complex, while in Ukraine the two were governed by different government entities. It is currently a museum.

In Ukrainian the cathedral is known as Sobor Sviatoii Sofii (Собор Святої Софії) or Sofiiskyi sobor (Софійський собор).

The complex of the cathedral is the main component and museum of the National Sanctuary "Sophia of Kyiv" which is the state institution responsible for the preservation of the cathedral complex as well as four other historic landmarks across the nation.

History

The cathedral is named after the 6th-century

mosaics and frescos from the 11th century, including a dilapidated representation of Yaroslav's family, and the Orans
.

Originally the cathedral was a burial place of the Kievan rulers including

Yaroslav I the Wise, although only the latter's grave survived to this day (see picture
).

Saint Sophia Cathedral, in 1889, Department of Image Collections, National Gallery of Art Library, Washington, DC

After the pillaging of Kyiv by

Cossack Hetman Ivan Mazepa
until 1767. During this period around Holy Sophia Cathedral a bell tower, a monastery canteen, a bakery, a "House of Metropolitan", the western gates (Zborovski gates), a Monastic Inn, a Brotherhood campus and a bursa (seminary) were all erected. All of these buildings, as well as the cathedral after the reconstruction, have distinctive features of Ukrainian Baroque.

The museum depicted on a 1988 5 rouble Soviet coin with a Russian inscription

After the October Revolution of 1917 in Russia and during the Soviet anti-religious campaign of the 1920s, the government plan called for the cathedral's destruction and transformation of the grounds into a park "Heroes of Perekop" (after a Red Army victory in the Russian Civil War in Crimea). The cathedral was saved from demolition[9] (the opposite St. Michael's Golden-Domed Monastery was blown up in 1935[9]) primarily with the effort of many scientists and historians. Nevertheless, in 1934, Soviet authorities confiscated the structure from the church, including the surrounding 17th–18th-century architectural complex and designated it as an architectural and historical museum.

Since the late 1980s, Soviet, and later Ukrainian, politicians promised to return the building to the Orthodox Church. Due to various

Patriarch Volodymyr of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church – Kyiv Patriarchate in 1995 when riot police were forced to prevent the burial on the premises of the museum and a bloody clash took place.[10][11][12]
After events such as those no religious body has yet been given the rights for regular services. The complex now remains a secular museum of Ukraine's Christianity, with most of its visitors being tourists.

On 21 August 2007, the Holy Sophia Cathedral was named one of the Seven Wonders of Ukraine, based on votes by experts and the internet community.

On September 2023, Kyiv was listed as a World Heritage “in danger” because of Russia’s war in Ukraine. This move by the United Nations was an effort to produce aid and protection for the site.[13]

Gallery

  • The Virgin Orans, c. 1000
    The Virgin Orans, c. 1000
  • Church Fathers Order, c. 1000
    Church Fathers Order, c. 1000
  • The Deesis, 1000
    The Deesis, 1000
  • Princely group portrait. South wall of the nave, c. 1000.
    Princely group portrait. South wall of the nave, c. 1000.
  • Sarcophagus of Yaroslav the Wise
    Sarcophagus of Yaroslav the Wise
  • The Annunciation. The Archangel Gabriel, 1000.
    The Annunciation. The Archangel Gabriel, 1000.
  • Saint Sophia The Wisdom of God, 1700
    Saint Sophia The Wisdom of God, 1700

Cathedral complex

Christmas celebrations in front of St. Sophia Cathedral bell tower
Model of the original Holy Sophia Cathedral on the ₴2 note
  • Sophia Cathedral
  • Bell tower
  • House of the Metropolitan
  • Refectory Church
  • Brotherhood building
  • Bursa (high school)
  • Consistory
  • Southern entrance tower
  • Zaborovski Gate
  • Cells
  • Monastic Inn
  • Memorial Stela of Yaroslav's library

See also

  • Architecture of Kyivan Rus
  • List of UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Ukraine
  • Holy Sophia Cathedral in Novgorod
  • Saint Sophia Cathedral in Polotsk

Notes

  1. World Heritage List.[2]

References

  1. ^ "7 чудес України - Новини". Archived from the original on 18 August 2007. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  2. ^ a b Kyiv Pechersk Lavra, St. Sophia Cathedral remain on UNESCO's World Heritage List, Interfax-Ukraine, 20 June 2013, archived from the original on 24 June 2013
  3. ^ "Міністерство культури України". Archived from the original on 11 July 2015. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  4. ^ "Міністерство культури України". Archived from the original on 21 July 2012. Retrieved 10 July 2015.
  5. ^ Голос України.–2011.–9 лютого. Міністерств багато, а Софія Київська – одна.–Градоблянська Т. (government website) Archived 2012-07-16 at archive.today
  6. ^ Facts.kieve.ua Archived 2010-01-17 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ "Kyiv". World Heritage Site.
  8. ^ Booklet "The Millenary of St. Sophia of Kyiv" by Nadia Nikitenko, Kyiv 2011
  9. ^ a b Forgotten Soviet Plans For Kyiv, Kyiv Post (28 July 2011)
  10. ^ "Reuters Archive Licensing". Reuters Archive Licensing. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  11. ^ "Police beat mourners at patriarch's burial". The Independent. 1995-07-19. Retrieved 2023-06-23.
  12. ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: "Ukraine - Patriarch Volodymyr's Burial Violence". YouTube. - More than 1,000 mourners had carried the coffin of the Patriarch of Kiev and All Ukraine, Volodymyr to his burial site. The Orthodox believers were intending to bury their religious leader in the grounds of the main Sofia cathedral, but police used force to stop the ceremony as the Patriarch's grave was being dug. As a temporary measure, police allowed mourners to bury the patriarch beneath the pavement in front of the cathedral."
  13. ^ Francis, Ellen; Han, Jintak (2023-09-16). "In photos: Centuries-old Kyiv cathedral and monastery on U.N. danger list". The Washington Post.

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Saint_Sophia_Cathedral,_Kyiv&oldid=1215328421"